Casting core wire removing implement



Nov. 7, 1961 A. D. SALVATORE 3,007,218

CASTING CORE WIRE REMOVING IMPLEMENT Filed Aug. 19, 1960 INVENTOR. ALBERT D. SALVATORE %%Mf Mam ATTOENEY-S a, 7,213 Patented Nov. 7, 1961 flee 3,007,218 CASTING CORE WIRE REMOVING IMPLEMENT Albert D. Salvatore, Pottstown, Pa. (Union House, Bechtelsville, Pa.) Filed Aug. 19, 1960, Ser. No. 50,763 4 Claims. (Cl. 22185) The present invention relates to an implement for removing a core reinforcing wire from a freshly cast article such as a furnace or heater section.

In the casting of furnace or heating sections, or other hollow articles, a core is molded of sand and binding ingredients and is treated, by the application of heat, so that it becomes hard. The core is reinforced with strands of wire which have to be removed from the casting after the sand core has been broken, pulverized, and removed from the casting. Heretofore, the strands of wire which remain in the casting after the sand has been removed are extri-cated from the casting by attaching a pulling instrument and applying repeated blows to the instrument to pull the wire around the portions of the casting and out of the access opening provided in the casting. Not only there is this operation of removing the wire by hand tedious and wasteful of energy, but it also slows down the casting operation and is inefficient.

An object of the present invention is to provide an implement for removing the core wires from a casting which is eflicient in operation, one which speeds up the work of cleaning up a freshly cast furnace or heater section, one which is economical to manufacture and assemble, and one which is highly effective in operation.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an implement for removing the reinforcing wires from a casting after the sand core has been pulverized and removed from the casting which enables a single operator to remove the core reinforcing wires with speed and efficiency, one which assists in straightening of the wires as they are removed from the casting so that the wires can be used over and over again, and one which has protective means for protecting the face of the casting adjacent the sides of the opening through which the reinforcing core wires are removed.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be fully apparent from the following description when taken in connection 'with the annexed drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an isometric view of the implement of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a view on an enlarged scale, taken on the line 22 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG- URE 1, on an enlarged scale, and with a midportion broken away;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary view in section showing the implement in use pulling a reinforcing wire from a casting; and

FIGURE 5 is a view taken on the line 55 of FIG URE 4.

With reference to the annexed drawing, in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, the implement of the present invention is designated generally by the reference numeral and it comprises an elongated tubular member 12 enlarged at one end to form a cage 14 having hand access openings 16 and 18 therein.

The reference numeral 20 designates generally the wall of a casting of a furnace or heater section from which a wire 22 must be removed before the heater section may be assembled with other sections to form a furnace or heater. A wire 22 serves the purpose of supporting a core of sand bound together by an ingredient and baked so that it will retain its shape during the casting operation, remain in the casting 20 after the sand has been broken up and removed by shaking and tumbling of the casting in a special tumbling drum.

Welded to the free end of the cage 14 is a metal protective and anchoring means, the said means comprising a pair of laterally spaced opposed guide members 24 arranged so that when the tubular member 12 is positioned adjacent the casting wall 20, the guide members 24 bridge the opening in the casting on each side of the flange surrounding the casting, as shown in FIGURES 4 and 5, the opening being designated by the numeral 26 and the flange by the numeral 28.

Wire clamp means, embodying a pair of jaws 30 and 32 hingedly connected together, are positioned longitudinally of and within the cage 14 and are provided with a hand actuable handle 34 for shifting the jaws 3t} and 32 toward and away from each other. This structure is conventional and is commonly known as an alligator type of wrench.

One end of the jaw 32 is provided with a threaded bore 35 receiving a threaded end portion 36 of a piston rod 38 which constitutes means operatively connected to the jaws 3e and 32 for projecting the jaws 3t) and 32 out of the cage 14 and for retracting the jaws 30 and 32 into the tubular member 12. The piston rod 38 carries on its end remote from the portion 36 a piston 40 slidably mounted in an air cylinder 52.

Depending from the air cylinder 42 is a valve 44 including a housing 46 in which is slidably mounted a .plunger 4$ which has an end portion biased exteriorly outwardly of the housing 46 by a coil spring 50.

A handle 52, having one end pivotally mounted on the housing 46, bears against the exterior end portion of the plunger 4-8 and is the means by which the plunger 48 is shifted so as to admit air under pressure received from a conduit 54 into the air cylinder 42 through inlet ports 43 and 45 on either side of the piston 40. Exhaust ports 56 and 58 are provided for releasing the air from either of the sides of the piston 40 as the piston 40 works back and forth within the air cylinder 42.

The air cylinder 42 has a portion 60 provided with external threads engaged by internal threads provided in the other end of the tubular member 12.

In use, the sand core of the casting 2.0 has previously been broken up and shaken from the casting 24 by placing the casting in a rattling machine. The wires 22 are now loose within the casting 2t) and may be manipulated by a hooked tool (not shown) or by the fingers of a workman so that an end portion of each wire can be brought in turn toward the opening 26 in the casting. Next, the tubular member 12 is positioned so that the cage 14 bears against the wall of the casting 20 with the guide members 24 bridging the opening 26 in the casting.

Admission of air under pressure to the end of the cylinder 42 through the inlet port 43 is accomplished by pressing the handle 52 part way toward the housing 46. This results in projecting the jaws 30' and 32 outwardly of the cage 14 so that they may be manually clamped on the wire 22 adjacent the end thereof by manipulation of the handle 34. Additional pressure on the handle 52 admits air under pressure through the inlet port 45 into the cylinder 42 and shifts the piston 40 toward the inlet port 43 to exhaust air through the exhaust port 56 and draw the jaws 3t) and 32 into the tubular member 12.

After the wire 22 has been pulled from the casting 20 into the tubular member 12, air is again admitted through the inlet 43 to the other end of the cylinder 42. This causes the piston 40 to be moved forwardly so that the handle 34 may be manipulated to open the jaws 30* and 32 and release the wire 22 for later reuse of the wire 22 after straightening.

The operation is repeated until all the wires have been removed from the casting 20.

What is claimed is:

1. For use with a freshly cast hot water heater section provided with an opening encompassed by a flange and having core wires loosely disposed therein, an implement for extracting said wires from said section, said implement comprising an elongated tubular member, a cage projecting from one end of said member, metal protective and anchoring means embodying a pair of laterallyspaced opposed guide members on the free end of said cage, wire clamp means positioned longitudinally of and within said cage, said cage being provided with handaccess openings, means operatively connected to said clamp means for projecting said clamp means out of said cage and for retracting said clamp means within said tubular member, a hand-actuable handle on said clamp means and projectable out of an access opening when the clamp means has been projected out of said cage, hand actuable means for positively effecting the projectile and retractile movement of said clamp means, said implement being adapted to be positioned so that the opposed guide members bridge said opening flange with the clamp means projected out of the cage and extending into said heater section opening.

2. For use with a freshly cast hot water heater section provided with an opening encompassed by a flange and having core wires loosely disposed therein, an implement for extracting said wires from said section, said implement comprising an elongated tubular member, a cage projecting from one end of said member, metal protective and anchoring means embodying a pair of laterallyspaced opposed guide members on the free end of said cage, wire clamp means positioned longitudinally of and within said cage, said cage being provided with handaccess openings, means embodying an air-operated ram assembly operatively connected to said clamp means for projecting said clamp means out of said cage and for retracting said clamp means within said tubular member, a hand-actutable handle on said clamp means and projectable out of an access opening when the clamp means has been projected out of said cage, hand actuable means for positively effecting the projectile and retractile movement of said clamp means, said implement being adapted to be positioned so that the opposed guide members bridge said opening flange with the clamp means projected out of the cage and extending into said heater section opening.

3. For use with a freshly cast hot water heater section provided with an opening encompassed by a flange and 5 having core wires loosely disposed therein, an implement for extracting said wires from said section, said implement comprising an elongated tubular member, a cage projecting from one end of said member, metal protective and anchoring means embodying a pair of laterallyspaced opposed guide members on the free end of said cage, wire clamp means positioned longitudinally of and within said cage, said cage being provided with handaccess openings, means operatively connected to said clamp means for projecting said clamp means out of said cage and for retracting said clamp means within said tubular member, said projecting and retracting means embodying a cylinder, a piston working in said cylinder, a piston rod extending slid-ably through one end of said cylinder and having one end secured to said piston and having the other end secured to said clamp means, and a source of air under pressure connected to said cylinder, a hand-actuable handle on said clamp means and projectable out of an access opening when the clamp means has ben projected out of said cage, hand actuable means embodying a valve for positively effecting the projectile and retractile movement of said piston rod, said implement being adapted to be positioned so that the opposed guide members bridge said opening flange with the clamp means projected out of the cage and extending into said heater section opening.

4. For use with a freshly cast hot water heater section provided with an opening encompassed by a flange and having core wires loosely disposed therein, an implement for extracting said wires from said section, said implement comprising an elongated tubular member, a cage projecting from one end of said member, metal protective and anchoring means embodying a pair of laterallyspaced opposed guide members on the free end of said cage, wire clamp means embodying a pair of jaws hingedly connected together, and a hand actuable handle operatively connected to said jaws for moving said jaws toward and away from each other and projectable out of an access opening when the clamp means has been projected out of said cage, means operatively connected to said clamp means for projecting said clamp means out of said cage and for retracting said clamp means within said tubular member, hand actuable means for positively effecting the projectile and retractile movement of said clamp means, said implement being adapted to be positioned so that the opposed guide members bridge, said opening flange with the clamp means projected out of the cage and extending into said heater section opening.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,312,947 Westman Mar. 2, 1943 2,870,496 Cooper Jan. 27, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 722,160 Great Britain Jan. 19, 1955 

